Businesses are gearing up for this weekend's George Paul Memorial Bull Riding event

April 30, 2007
By John Ludlum
Publisher

The bulls are being loaded, the trucks are rolling, the Val Verde County Fairgrounds are being cleaned and readied and enthusiasm is building for the longest, continuous bull riding in history, the 30th George Paul Memorial Bull Riding, the Original Superbull. Forty-five different riders will compete Saturday, May 5 and Sunday, May 6 for thousands of dollars in prize money. The money won at the GPMBR counts toward becoming one of the top forty-five bull riders in the world to compete at the PBR, Professional Bull Riders, Finals the last weekend in October and the first weekend in November for a PBR World Championship. The year-end world champion will receive a one million dollar bonus for becoming the world champion. PBR Finals qualification is based on the top forty-five money winners for the current season at the conclusion of the regular season in early October.

It’s not just the bull riders and fans who are excited however. Area businesses are also in competition to see who will win the George Paul Memorial Bull Riding “Go Western, Spirit Award”. The award will be made at the Saturday night performance of the bull riding that decorates their business the most western with a bull riding theme and for employees who dress western the week of the bull riding. Del Rio Mayor Efrin Valdez proclaimed the week of April 30 thru May 6, 2007, as George Paul Memorial Bull Riding week at the city council meeting April 24, 2007. Applications for entering the free contest can be obtained by calling the George Paul Museum & Gift Shop and Bull Riding Office at 775-9595 or by going by the museum. Applications will be faxed to businesses by request.

In Addition, Bobby Paul, producer of the George Paul Memorial Bull Riding, said today, “Mix 96 radio is running a contest Monday thru Friday this week and will giving away tickets, a T-shirt and koozies to the daily winners. We have a life sized cutout of my brother, the late George Paul for whom the bull riding is named and we honor. The cutout will be displayed at a different area business each day this week and if you locate the cutout and call from that business you’re the daily winner. It ought to be a lot of fun and Mix 96 will give clues where the cut out of George is on any given day. Listen to Mix 96 for details and clues.”

The current contestant entry list includes three world champions and a number of professional bull ridings’ top 45 contenders for the year. A large number of the bull riding contestants will be coming to Del Rio from Nampa, Idaho. Next week’s article will include who some of the top name bull riders in the world are who have entered the 30th Annual George Paul Memorial Bull Riding and what day they will be riding.

Tickets for the two performance event can be purchased at the George Paul Museum & Gift Shop located at 810 South Main, Del Rio, Texas, 78840 next door to the Emporium. The phone number for the bull riding office located at the museum is 830-775-9595. Other ticket locations are located at Sam’s Boot Corral, Railway Feeds, Corral West Ranch Wear and Wal-Mart

This year’s event is sponsored by Ram Country Dodge, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Budweiser and Fred Loya Insurance. The bull riding will be held May 5, at 7:00 p.m. and May 6, at 3:00 p.m at the Val Verde County Fairgrounds.